Heads for dermatology treatment
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
- a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin;
a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; and
a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block, wherein the thermally conductive block comprises a skin contacting surface made of a metal.
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus for dermatology treatment are provided which involve the use of continuous wave (CW) radiation, preheating of the treatment volume, precooling, cooling during treatment and post-treatment cooling of the epidermis above the treatment volume, various beam focusing techniques to reduce scattering and/or other techniques for reducing the cost and/or increasing the efficacy of optical radiation for use in hair removal and other dermatological treatments. A number of embodiments are included for achieving the various objectives indicated above.
380 Citations
26 Claims
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1. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; and a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block, wherein the thermally conductive block comprises a skin contacting surface made of a metal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 14, 16, 17, 26)
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6. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block; and a channel configured and arranged to receive the radiation from the radiation source and deliver the radiation to the area of skin, wherein the channel is configured and arranged to contact the area of skin. - View Dependent Claims (7)
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9. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block; and a channel configured and arranged to receive the radiation from the radiation source and deliver the radiation to the area of skin, wherein the channel comprises a lens.
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10. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block; and a mechanism for measuring the rate at which the head is moved across the area of skin. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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15. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin, wherein the radiation is substantially incoherent; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; and a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block.
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18. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; and a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block, wherein the thermally conductive block is arranged such that it does not pass over the segment of the area of skin after the radiation from the radiation source, when the head is moved in the first direction.
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19. A method of treating an area of skin, comprising:
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projecting radiation onto the area of skin such that a plurality of segments of the area of skin are sequentially irradiated by the radiation; and removing heat by conduction from each of the plurality of segments of the area of skin by moving a block across the area of skin, the step of removing heat from a given segment of the area of skin occurring before the step of projecting radiation onto the given segment. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A dermatologic treatment applicator, comprising:
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a radiation source configured and arranged to deliver radiation to an area of skin; a head comprising a thermally conductive block arranged such that it passes over a segment of the area of skin prior to irradiation of the skin segment by the radiation source, when the head is moved in a first direction; and a thermal component configured and arranged to cool the thermally conductive block, wherein the thermally conductive block includes a planar surface arranged to contact the area of skin and is made of a metal.
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Specification